Policy analysis of lower back pain prevention index enhancement in the construction industry.

Abstract

Prolonged exposure to whole body vibration (WBV) is a major health hazard for construction workers, leading to chronic lower back pain (LBP). There are number of items (i.e. age of the worker, working hours, weight of the workers, job satisfaction, smoking, education background, training programme, WBV standard, safety and health budget, working experience, WBV exposure, seat type, soil type, age of the machine, night shift, job rotation, and exercise ) affecting LBP due to WBV exposure in the construction industry among the heavy equipment operators. This study utilizes a system dynamic modelling approach to perform several policies related to human, equipment, and financial resources to reduce LBP due to WBV exposure and enhance LBP prevention index in the long-term. The results pinpoint the importance of human resources, suggesting the company hire more workers to reduce night shifts and working hours, and increase job rotation.